Christmas is booking up and people are already starting to think about spring 2010 break as the March inquiries start rolling in.

If you’re thinking about a Breckenridge ski vacation and looking for a vacation rental, plan early as the best properties will get snapped up quickly.

While the general sentiment in the United State is that property values have taken a nosedive these last few years, Breckenridge, Colorado has remained surprisingly stable showing a positive increase in property values.  Most of the property owners have chosen to invest in Breckenridge because they’re passionate about the area and really feel connected, even though most only visit their homes a few weeks per year.  Additionally, most property owners in Breckenridge really don’t need to sell their properties if it means taking a large discount.  So they just continue to enjoy them and choose not to participate in the panic selling that’s going on in other areas of the country.
While overall sales volume may be down in Breckenridge, visitors are still coming in full force.  Owners of Breckenridge vacation rental properties are enjoying the cash flow created by the continuous stream of guests vacationing throughout the entire year.  Yes, there is more to Breckenridge than just skiing.  The summer is packed with events that continue to lure visitors and they all need a place to stay.
On the other hand, being successful as a vacation property owner certainly requires more work than just collecting rent checks and letting the property appreciate over time.   The real work comes in marketing and managing the property as a short-term rental.
To keep up with the competition in the highly competitive market, the property needs as much exposure to potential guests as possible.  This is achieved by advertising on local, national and international levels.  Today approximately 83% of travel research is done over the Internet.  Thus having a powerful presence on the web is critical.  This can take the form of a simple listing on a vacation rental website to “pay-per-click” advertising, daily blogging, social media networks, referral relationships with others in the industry, and the list goes on.
However, to compete successfully it’s nearly impossible for an individual who owns just one property to get the maximum performance out of the property because of the time and management commitment that goes into each home.
Working with a good vacation rental property manager is an absolute must, particularly one that has a strong Internet marketing and booking process.  To find out more about the benefits of professionally managing your vacation rental home, please contact Mark Gossman at Ten Peaks Lodging.  Maximizing your investment is the key to a successful return and certainly makes the whole property more enjoyable for your time as the owner.

Breckenridge has such a diverse group of summer activities going on this year that it’s sure to attract a wide audience.

While last minute plans seem to be the preferred method of booking Breckenridge Lodging, don’t sacrifice quality when looking for that great last minute deal on a place to stay.

At Ten Peaks Lodging you’ll find a great selection of hand-picked properties around the town of Breckenridge. These luxury vacation rentals have been personally selected and inspected by the owners of Ten Peaks Lodging in Breckenridge for their location and amenities. Families or large groups will find that staying in a luxury vacation rental home can be more cost effective and provide space as well as all the comforts of home.

Be sure to check out all the events and places to dine at www.tenpeaks.com

If you’re questioning the value of using a real estate professional during the buying process, ask yourself some in-depth questions…and be honest with your answers.

• How well do I know the area where I’m looking to buy?
• How strong are my negotiation skills?
• How knowledgeable am I of local home values, taxes, utility info, and school data?
• How many times have I gone through the home-buying process? Twice? Ten times? Thirty times?
• How important to me is a smooth closing?
• How much free time do I have, and can I dedicate all of my efforts to this?

More ambitious buyers who choose to work extra hard can find out short, simple answers to some common questions. But as this report on whether buyers should use a real estate professional reminds us, it takes a full-time person within the field to be able to give credible, detailed, personalized answers.

Indications show that happy buyers are usually those who choose to work with real estate professionals rather than going it alone. And there are a variety of reasons. From ease-of-buying to added peace of mind after the closing, using a real estate professional, such as a Buyer’s Representative, just plain makes sense.

In addition to declining sales, increased vacancies, and forced contract re-negotiations, the commercial real estate market is facing challenges regarding commercial mortgage delinquencies – just as the home real estate market has.

While commercial mortgage delinquencies are significantly lower than home mortgage delinquencies, they are rising. Just how much are they rising?

Check out this article from Realtor.org for the figures:

Commentary: Commercial Real Estate Faces Threat from CMBS Delinquencies

This article further details how rising commercial mortgage delinquencies lead to further danger even for well-performing properties because of the way these ventures are financed. Just check out the recent story of General Growth Properties, Inc. declaring bankruptcy, impacting over 150 of their well-performing retail properties. (Read more about General Growth Properties in this Wall Street Journal article.)

Try a real estate investment club. Regardless of your level of experience in investment real estate, these networking opportunities can be a valuable asset to advance your career.

Just how can these clubs help you?

This article from a commercial real estate blog explains how whether you’re just starting out or you’re a seasoned professional, you can benefit from networking.

New to real estate? Build your contacts, and learn everything you can from the people who’ve been there.

Know just about everything there is to know about real estate? Take these clubs as an opportunity to market yourself – both at the meetings and long after they’re over by meeting new people and suggesting they sign up to read your blog or join your email list.

Read more about real estate investment clubs in this article:
Networking Brings Value at Real Estate Investment Clubs

- Mark Gossman, Commercial Real Estate Broker

As detailed in our last blog post, “Are We in the Third or Fifth Inning of the Commercial Real Estate Game?”, the economy’s impact on commercial real estate is twofold. First, everyone has less money to spend. But, second, businesses are laying off employees. And fewer employees means a decreased demand for commercial office space.

This article from PropertyWire.com suggests “it will be survival of the fittest going forward” in the commercial real estate industry. But, the future can actually be bright for those who are able to survive.

They say that strong investors will be able to capitalize on buying opportunities that emerge as loans default and distressed assets increase.

Read more about how these buying opportunities could lead to a bright future at the end of the tunnel in this article:
Bargain prices could help US commercial real estate market recover

- Mark Gossman, Minnesota Real Estate Broker

This continued downward spiral of job losses only fuels the fire of what is yet to come in the world of commercial real estate.  With companies cutting back, their need for office space follows suit, which equals higher vacancy rates and delinquency.

Many new construction projects that entered the market in 2006 and 2007 with hopes of filling the second half of empty spec space now sit in waiting while construction loans come due, and financing is nearly impossible to obtain on half- empty buildings.

Enter the opportunity seekers.

While lenders become familiar with their newly acquired assets, opportunity seekers are waiting in the wings ready to pounce when the time is right.  Is the time right?  Not quite yet, as many of the lenders have not come to grips with the reality of values and the reality of unloading their newly acquired assets.

One of the biggest problems in trying to determine the value of commercial real estate is the pure lack of transactions over the last twelve to eighteen months.  While vacancies are just now starting to rise and new leases are full of tenant perks, getting a handle on what a building is worth is extremely difficult.

What the future brings for commercial real estate values will be highly dependant on how quickly this economy turns and how quickly jobs can be added instead of subtracted.  Better days will be here again.  Just hang on to your hat or your property if you can, and try to stay in the game.

- Mark Gossman, Minnesota Real Estate Broker